1. Field
The present disclosure relates to a method of acquiring user information by querying a lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP) server during an image forming operation that uses the user information.
2. Description of the Related Art
An image forming apparatus such as a printer, a facsimile, a scanner, or a multi-functional machine may need user information in order to perform an image forming operation. For example, the image forming apparatus may need an email address of a user, which is used to transmit a scanned image, as an outgoing address in order to perform a scan to email function.
User information such as an email address is acquired by querying a lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP) server. An LDAP is a software protocol that aids in finding positions of organizations, individuals, or resources, such as files or devices, which are provided on a network, such as the Internet or an enterprise's intranet.
Meanwhile, if an image forming operation is performed using wrong user information, confusion may arise. For example, if a scan to email function is performed using a wrong email address as an outgoing address, although a receiver sends a reply to a sender via email, the reply may not be received by the sender. Therefore, it is very important to acquire accurate user information by querying the LDAP server.